Crockett Suspends Permits For “Tiny Houses”
By Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
CROCKETT – The Crockett City Council met Monday, Dec. 18 to discuss improvements to parking in the downtown area, hire a consultant to get the city charter project back on track and to suspend permits for so-called “tiny homes” until some ground rules can be set. Light refreshments were served to attendees as the city celebrated the last council meeting before the Christmas break.
Crockett Police Department (CPD) Chief Clayton Smith presented the numbers his department dealt with in the month of November, totaling 16 officers, 3,199 manpower hours, 447 calls leading to 26 arrests. There were eight accidents and 337 traffic stops during the month.
Councilman Mike Marsh asked if these numbers were typical, with Smith responding many of the theft calls in the city come from certain big box stores and cases of shoplifting and reminded the council residents should take extra care during the holidays to keep from being victims of crime.
City Administrator John Angerstein reminded the council of the work yet to be done to complete the overhaul to the city charter and have the work completed so it can be approved by the voters later next year. The city had already begun progress on the work before their consultant left the project, unable to tailor his approach to the specific needs of the city.
Angerstein brought in Charles Zech from the law firm of Denton, Navarro, Rocha, Bernal and Zech, who joined the meeting by video conference to offer his services as the city’s new expert as they navigate the complicated process, making sure to stay in compliance with state law. Zech touted his work with government entities, cities and economic development corporations in doing this kind of work, noting he had studied every single city charter in the state of Texas as part of his work on his Masters Degree.
Zech said he understood the specific needs of the city, with Angerstein saying the city could save money, as much of the work could be done remotely, without having Zech personally present for many of the necessary meetings. He told the council he has recently worked on other cities such as Kerrville and San Antonio.
“It makes me feel good, knowing you have experience with different cities and different size cities,” Crockett Mayor Dr. Ianthia Fisher said. “I think this will go faster if we can use some of your expertise.”
“You make a good point,” Zech answered. “There are a lot of unique twists with charters and I bring the legal aspects to the table, making sure it’s legal, but I also can give your committee the pros and cons if they deal with any policy issues. I don’t live in Crockett, so I have no vested interest in the outcome, which is always important.”
It was discussed if this was work the city could do on its own, with Angerstein pointing out even comparing the city’s charter with other cities doesn’t always help much, as many of those cities’ charters may not have been updated and may be out of sync with state law.
“Due to the nature of this work and the magnitude of it, it would be wise for us to seek professional help from this firm,” Councilman Ernest Jackson said.
Councilman Dennis Ivey agreed, saying he had looked over the proposal and it looked good to him. The council voted to allow mayor Fisher to engage the firm to help update the charter.
Angerstein told the council about the phenomenon of “tiny houses,” which have become popular over the past few years. He said empty properties are purchased and several tiny homes are installed and rented to people needing an inexpensive option to live. Some of these homes, Angerstein said, were no more than storage sheds and the city had no provisions to regulate these and control them. He asked council to approve a moratorium on new building permits for such structures until the city’s planning and zoning committee could analyze the issue and propose some language or ordinances to make the city’s policy clear.
Councilman Ivey asked if people living in trailers behind homes was permissible, to which the answer was, “No.”
“Then we should deal with that as well,” Ivey said. “And it can hurt real estate ‘comps,’ when you have three or four nice homes on a street and then some little modular building on the same street.”
Fisher agreed, saying many people are worried about their property values. The council agreed and approved the measure, saying it would be good to have some conformity to the city’s policy on the matter and have it apply, city-wide.
The council also approved the purchase of a 2003 Mack truck since the city’s vehicle is not currently working. Angerstein told the council Live Oak – the new owners of Piney Woods Sanitation had an extra truck they would part with for $10,000, with comparable models being over $40,000. He told the council the city would be able to recoup much of the cost by selling their existing units for parts.
The council also approved the use of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to renovate the parking area in downtown Crockett next to the Moosehead Cafe, to install sidewalks and grade the area to make it more appealing for people to use as they visit downtown to shop, eat or go to visit city or county offices.
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
